title: Family physicians' utilization of a brief smoking cessation program following reinforcement contact after training: a randomized trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Previous studies have examined methods of delivery of brief interventions and reinforcement contact and their effects on physicians' utilization of smoking cessation interventions. In this study the objectives were: (1) to determine the ongoing utilization by family physicians of a brief smoking cessation intervention 6 months after a training workshop and (2) to examine the effect of reinforcement contact on physician utilization. A supplementary aim was to assess point prevalence abstinence among patients identified as ready to quit smoking.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a randomized controlled trial of family physicians (98 in the Contact and 100 in the Noncontact group). Training was conducted in a 2-hr workshop. Doctors in the Contact group received three brief telephone calls at 2 weeks, 2 months, and 4 months after training. Main outcome measures were: (1) utilization, determined by responses to a mailed questionnaire about use of the program, and (2) the number of booklets distributed by full-time doctors, collected by practice secretaries or research assistant.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At 6 months 88% of physicians (93% of the Contact group and 84% of the Noncontact group, P = 0.06) were current users of the smoking cessation intervention. Full-time physicians in the Contact group distributed significantly more booklets (40.1) over 6 months than those in the Noncontact group (32.8) (P < 0.05). Twenty-one percent of patients reported not smoking at follow-up at an average of 9.9 months after intervention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most doctors continued to use the program 6 months after training and reinforcement contact encouraged greater recruitment of patients.
authors.affiliation: School of Community Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. R.Richmond@unsw.edu.au
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Richmond
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mendelsohn
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kehoe
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing; D005194:Family Practice; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods; D010819:Physician's Role; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000193:education; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires